Annual PV inverter shipments to grow to 90 GW in 2020

Annual solar photovoltaic (PV) inverter shipments globally are forecast to reach 90 GW alternating current (AC) by 2020, as compared to 59.7 GW in 2015 and 42.1 GW in 2014.

The average annual growth rate will be 11% between 2016 and 2020, according to “The Global PV Inverter and MLPE Landscape 2016” report by GTM Research. The long-term outlook is positive, while growth will be flat in 2016.

Last year, 66% of shipments were in the Asia-Pacific region, thanks to demand from China and Japan, but GTM Research projects that the region’s share will fall below 50% by the end of the decade. Demand will shift to regions such as Latin America, India, the Middle East and Africa.

There will be also changes in technology. Central inverters grabbed 57% the market in 2015, but will see their share decline to 43% by 2020. This will mainly be due to the continued rise of demand for three-phase string inverters, which are forecast to reach 37% of all PV inverter shipments in four years.

GTM says that module-level power electronics will hit a 10% share of 2020 shipments, as prices fall and use expands to commercial markets.

The company expects inverter prices to decline by 10%-12% annually for most product segments. The 1,500-volt inverter technology, higher power density string inverters and falling microinverter pricing are driving the overall downward pricing trend.

By 2020, the global PV inverter market will be worth over USD 7.1 billion (EUR 6.3bn), GTM added.

Choose your newsletter by Renewables Now. Join for free!